TILT seminar by Dr. Aline Reichow

Aline is a Post Doc researcher at the German Federal Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA), in the Division Hazardous
Substances and Biological Agents. She is leading an
interdisciplinary project on the establishment of governance networks,
with representatives from academia, industry, and regulatory agencies,
to explore their potential for contributing to the regulation of
advanced materials such as nanomaterials. Aline received her PhD from
the University of Twente in the Group Law and Regulation (Thesis
title: Effective Regulation under Conditions of Scientific Uncertainty,
2015). She was a visiting scholar at the University of Padova
(2014) and Northeastern University (2013). Aline received her Master of
Science (Science and Technology Studies, 2011) and Bachelor of Arts (Arts and Culture, 2009) degrees from Maastricht University.

Abstract

In
the regulation of technologies a well-known image is that of the hare
(technology) and the tortoise (regulation). The latter moves slowly and
is rather stiff whereas the hare is agile, moving quickly in
different directions and is running ahead. In this talk I explore the
opportunities and limits of a proposed solution to the problem that
regulation cannot keep pace with technological change. Often regulators
do not have the necessary information available to develop science-based rules for the mitigation of the risks of new technologies.

Most
technological innovations in the area of chemicals, e.g. nanomaterials,
are developed in startup enterprises and small research institutes.
Typically, these enterprises do not have specialized expertise and
knowledge available related to chemical safety and they are requiring
support in dealing with, and applying, related regulatory
obligations. The companies realize the need to learn about these aspects
because potential human health and environmental risks are often still
uncertain in the early phases of material development but at the same
time (potential) customers raise concern about these issues.

I
argue that engaging startups in governance networks can lead to the
development of effective chemicals regulation. In these networks
representatives from academia, industry, research institutions, and
regulatory bodies can exchange and extend the knowledge on health and
safety aspects of innovative materials. When the collaborators show
strong trust in each other they exchange relevant knowledge which can
provide the basis for the development of new scientific facts and
(amendment of) science-based rules. However, ‘too much’ trust among
collaborators bears the risk of capture and development of rules that merely
fit the interests of industry. The nature of this ‘trust-based
regulation’ will be explored more closely in future research with the
idea to identify conditions under which this form of regulation can be applied.

On
this basis a governance strategy will be developed for the regulation
of new technologies under conditions of risk uncertainty.

Rather
than providing clear cut research results, in this talk I want to
present preliminary findings related to my postdoc project at the
Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA) in
Germany. With this project BAuA starts engaging in the topic of
regulatory governance. Ideally, in the future, new research
projects in this area can be set up that allow us to strategically
reflect on the impact of research and development activities related to
chemicals as well as other themes such as robotics or the internet of things.